Anthropic has announced preparations for an initial public offering that could value the artificial intelligence research company at $1.4 trillion.

The proposed flotation comes amid substantial flows of capital into advanced machine learning worldwide. Its valuation target illustrates the scale of the financial ambitions surrounding the technology, although preparations for an offering do not establish the price investors will ultimately accept.

The distinction between valuation and fundraising is also important: the $1.4 trillion figure concerns the company’s prospective worth, not the amount it would raise through selling shares. Whether Anthropic achieves that valuation remains unresolved.